Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in Peace-Centred Development

Livelihoods & Institutions

The Natural Resources Institute (NRI) (www.nri.org) is an internationally renowned multi-disciplinary centre of the University of Greenwich that undertakes research, consultancy and training to support sustainable development, food security, economic growth and poverty reduction in developing countries.

The Livelihoods and Institutions Department at the Natural Resources Institute (NRI) is seeking a highly motivated Postdoctoral Researcher in Peace-Centred Development to contribute to the development and delivery of high-quality research on various aspects of peace-centred development and socially-just futures. This position is linked to a UKRI-funded Prosperity and Peace Pathways Project.

The successful candidate will be part of a dynamic team working on cutting-edge research that explores the intersections between prosperity, peace, climate change and social justice. He/she will come from a social science background with experience working on projects related to conflict, peace, development and social justice, preferably in low-income settings. In addition, the candidate will have strong research and analytical skills, with experience in qualitative and quantitative methods, as well as experience in using different knowledge co-creation tools. 

The candidate will bring a wealth of both academic and practitioner knowledge into the project, assisting the PI in analysing new data emerging from the Project’s Citizen Labs (which are currently operational in Chad, Niger and Nigeria), including delivering activities around scenario-based forecasting and backcasting, prosperity-peace pathway modelling and SDG localisation.

The role is ideally suited for someone who is:

• Capable of using innovative social science data gathering approaches that are inclusive, participatory and deliberative, such as Young Citizen Panels, Consensus Conferences and Local Citizen Labs. 
• Comfortable with desk-based work and skilled in extracting, filtering, querying and analysing large amounts of information from literature materials on conflict, fragility, prosperity, peace, complex emergency and the environment, and from other sources such as the news media, case studies, historic texts and encyclopaedias.
• Capable of working with project colleagues and collaborators to publish excellent academic papers and build upon ideas in published papers to foster knowledge transfer and impact through production of podcasts, policy briefs, opinion pieces, videos and pieces of artistic expression.
• Eager to explore new ways of knowledge exchange and evidence synthesis in emerging areas linked to conflict transformation, peace-centred development and socially-just futures.
• Looking to build networks across the scientific and practitioner communities in areas such as climate security, environmental peacebuilding, environmental stewardship and sustainable development.
• Eager to contribute to the research profile of the Natural Resources Institute and its submissions to the Research Excellence Framework.

The successful candidates will be highly ambitious and have knowledge of interdisciplinary, applied research related to peace-centred development and socially-just futures, with a focus on sustainable livelihoods, conflict transformation, peacebuilding and institutional arrangements for creating equitable, inclusive and sustainable societies that prioritise the well-being and rights of all people. He/she will be able to coordinate analysis of large datasets; and a hard worker, who is eager to learn and be trained, seeking out and considering different knowledge systems, with good judgement about when to use initiative and when to consult, and consistently performing at a high level.

For a more detailed description of responsibilities and qualification requirements, please see the JD. 

The role requires a flexible approach, interacting with a diverse range of stakeholders within, and outside of the University.

For an informal discussion about the post please contact Dr Uche Okpara on u.t.okpara@gre.ac.uk

Should you have any queries please contact the People Directorate Team on peopleoperationsfes@gre.ac.uk

We operate a hybrid working policy, as set out in the University’s Working Principles and Guidelines.

Further details of the fantastic benefits and what we offer can be found here: Our benefits - what we offer | Jobs and careers | University of Greenwich

To apply, please visit the University of Greenwich vacancies page and complete all details, including the supporting statements (please note attached CVs and personal statements will not be seen by the recruitment panel at the application stage). Current Vacancies - Jobs at Greenwich 

Employment Visa: Under the UK Government Points Based System scheme this role does meet the criteria to be sponsored for a Skilled Worker Route application. 

We are looking for people who can help us achieve our Strategic Plan, through the values we expect for our whole university community, of being Inclusive, Collaborative and Impactful.

Academic Career Pathways

The university welcomes people from diverse and underrepresented communities who can help the university to achieve its mission. 

We do this through taking positive action such as encouraging applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic, disabled and LGBT+ people. As part of our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Time to Change Employer Pledge/Mentally Healthy Universities, we are committed to promoting and supporting the physical and mental health of all our staff, and removing barriers to improve inclusion. 

We encourage applicants to disclose experience of mental health problems so we can support them fully during our recruitment process and make any necessary reasonable adjustments. Any information disclosed will be kept confidential and separate from the job application form. 

We are making significant strides to understand and continuously improve our employees’ experience and we are committed to implementing progressive diversity talent management.

Further details:
Job Description & Person Specification

View All Vacancies